Welcome to the UM blog

We’re going to try to give you a little extra several times a week with my blog, which makes its debut today.

Football will be the emphasis during the next few months, but we’ll talk about all UM sports depending on what’s happening down in Coral Gables.

If you have any questions regarding the Hurricanes that need answers, feel free to pass them along and I’ll answer as many as I can.

Here are some observations and tidbits following the eight days of fall practice:

• Is the Hurricanes’ offense better? It’s hard to tell. Reporters only get to see the first 25 minutes of practice and most of that time is spent on stretching and special teams. But you have to like the confidence of new offensive coordinator Rich Olson. I liked Dan
Werner, but he never seemed completely comfortable in his role. Olson spent the past 10 years in the NFL — including two as offensive coordinator of the Arizona Cardinals — and is not going to get all wigged out if Miami’s offense has a bad game and the talkshows and message boards start lobbing their inevitable bombs.

• Calais Campbell is going to have a breakout season. That’s a guess, but my hope, too. The 6-feet-8, 270-pound defensive end has one of the truly refreshing personalities on the UM team. But he’s not just a nice guy. Campbell played well enough to unseat senior starter Bryan Pata during spring practice and coaches think he can become a monster pass rusher.

• Believe it or not, Campbell isn’t the biggest player on the roster. That label goes to freshman offensive lineman Ian Symonette, who is listed in the team’s media guide as 6-9 and 338 pounds. He supposedly showed up this summer weighing more than 400 pounds, but has slimmed down and is expected to contribute immediately.

• Got to feel bad for for Atlantic High School standout Orlando Franklin, who is sidelined after the NCAA Clearinghouse denied his eligibility because of coursework he took while attending a Toronto high school in the ninth and 10th grades. As far as I can tell, Franklin did everything right and was even enrolled at UM for summer classes when he found out the NCAA wouldn’t let him play. Franklin has appealed the Clearinghouse’s decision. But I can’t remember many times in recent years when the Clearinghouse has overturned its decision to deny eligibility. That would be a shame for Franklin and UM, which could use him immediately on the offensive line.

• Interesting story on back-up quarterback Matt Perrelli. UM coach Larry Coker was recruiting Courtney Harris at Jupiter High School and noticed Perrelli, who was offered a chance to come to UM as a “preferred walk-on”, which means he didn’t have to audition for the team. Perrelli, who did not receive a single scholarship offer from a Division I-A team, accepted the invitation and is battling this fall with fellow walk-on Jorge Fernandez for the No. 3 quarterback job behind Kyle Wright and back-up Kirby Freeman. Even if Perrelli doesn’t beat out Fernandez, he will play a key role for the Hurricanes this season as a holder on field goals and extra points for Jon Peattie.

• The hit of fall practice has been freshman receiver Sam Shields. Shields nearly didn’t make it to UM because of academics, but was cleared at the last minute and has made an immediate impression. Coaches have been raving about the soft-spoken Shields and that’s rare for a first-year player. With Ryan Moore suspended for the first two games, Shields began working with UM’s No. 1 offense on Tuesday in a three-receiver set alongside Lance Leggett and Darnell Jenkins.

• Got to be a little concerned about Charlie Jones’ hamstring pull, which hasn’t allowed him to practice beyond a limited basis for nearly a week.

25 thoughts on “Welcome to the UM blog”

Love the new section. I am a little concern for Kyle’s health with four new starters on the O-line. The one thing that impresses me is his toughness. With Florida State on Labor Day will the line be ready. FSU will probably run the same game plan against Kyle as they did last year “Blitz” all night. How is the Seminoles defense this year?

A year or two late on the Canes Blog. I think i’ll stick to the guy thats been filling us in over at the sentinal, Omar Kelly. Better information. Jorge, you along with 80 percent of the articles from the post have always had bias against the Maimi Hurricanes and its family, no need to buddy up now to pull blogers in. I’ll be getting the info from Greentree. By the Way hope you guys are pulling for the ohio states, notre dames, and usc’s, you know the ones that get the courtousey rankings in the preseason polls. Sky is the limit and we love to prove the naysayers wrong. 6 in 06!!!

Besides : look at the first 2 comments to your blog. #1 KW got hit 2-3 times more than last year and he stood tough all year. we have better talent and a new oline coach that was pursued by the NY Jets in the offseason. Kyle Wright will be just fine. #2 Hester leaving was not only big news, but we are much better off without him, being he was mostly concerned with his draft status and not a player willing to do anything to help the team.

The Post is weak on the stories and there no doubt is a long standing bias from some of the current and former writers. Look no further than the Willie Williams story and the coverage given to the arrests at FSU , UF and Miami. Now ,this Blog is welcome although 2 years late, I hope we see more info and fair reports………

Jorge, we have e-mailed several times over the last 5 years. UM helped your career so I am hopeful the blog is payback. The other two guys at the PB Post are your seniors and totally biased for FSU and UF – so let’s see if you can be left alone. Good Luck, you still get the best material to work with, Dude!!

It’s good to see a fell UM’r in the Palm Beach area. I have been up here almost 2 years now…and JUST recently have I noticed more support for The “U” (btw Go ‘Canes!!!). I have been die hard up here, even against my 5 to 1 ratio Gators to Canes. But I hold my own. Hope to read a bunch more on them. Good Luck and thanks for reigniting my hear which still lingers in Coral Gables.

hey forget about the bs EA GIVES ENOUGH OF THAT SAYING THEY HAVE BEEN BIAS WITH MIAMI, BUT THE BOTTOM LINE IS THIS MIAMI WILL COMPETE FOR NATIONAL TITLE BECAUSE I THINK THE COAHING CHANGES WILL MAKE DIFFERENCE ESPECIALLY THE OFF. COORDINATOR MAN I THOUGHT HE WOULD NEVER GET FIRED.COKER WAS OUT OF HIS MIND TO KEEP HIM THIS LONG BROCK OVER CRUDUP CRAZY. I THINK ITS ON NOW. GO CANES

it is now the third day without a new update. This is definitely no way to start a new blog, take a look at “the Big O” and the Legion down south. daily entries, great info, soo much going on and all you can give us is some info on Parelli being a E.P. holder, telling us Campbell isn’t the biggest guy on the team. this is all info we can get by looking at the canes media guide. Some deeper info is needed and much, much more frequently. this one post and three days off is o.k for march-july but 17 days till, FSU, this will not due. 3-4 days 1 off is more like it. Get crackin!!! i have not given up on this blog yet but it is a far cry from what the “Legion” gets.

I wanted to give the blog a bit of a chance but three days without an update is almost long enough.

Jorge,
You are a very fine writer and you give excellent insight when dealing with the hurricanes. As far as the UM bias at the Post, that is false and completely out of your control. Keep up the great work. (Greg Stoda is highly over-rated though)
Thanks,
Die-hard cane, Class of 91′

I have to agree with earlier posts, if you aren’t going to blog more often than once every five days, don’t do the blog. Especially when we’re two weeks away from our biggest game of the seaon. Gotta get with it Jorge.

Hey Jorge, is this a weekly blog or what. I guess I am not really surprised. I used to work for the PB Post sports section years ago and this was always how things worked over there. I just recently decided to give the post another try after years of relying on the Sun-Sentinal for my information. now I see Why. For anyone who is a real CANES fan, Please join the “Legion” over at the Sun-Sentinal. Omar Kelly gives updates constantly and the follow-up from the public is also unbelievable.

well, this blog is as bad as the rest of the legion said…nice try Jorge, but you cant beat the man (Big O), so you cant be the man….
Your blog will be what you put into it, why Omar’s blog is the animal it is. An animal needs to be fed DAILY, and Omar works OT to feed his creation.
If you are going to half-a$$ it, don’t bother!

SANDS N D HOUR GLASS SO R D DAYS OF FLORIDA STATES LIVES ITS ON AND FLORIDA ST, WILL NOT BLITZ DAT MUCH THEYVE GOT A OFF. COORDINATOR IT OPENS UP THE SCREENS AND DRAWS NOPE NOT ALOT OF BLITZING WERNER I WOULD BE NERVOUS THEY ARE BACK TO THE PRO STYLE OFFENSE. MIAMI WILL DOMINATE GO CANES